Having worked in retail phone repair for 15 years, both for a major US carrier and privately… A lot.
I saw water damaged phones every single day, and I’m hundreds of miles from an ocean, sea, lake, or any major body of water. That’s just from mistakes near things like backyard pools.
This is because waterproof devices will bemight be exempt from having to have replaceable batteries.
Some manufacturers are already eyeing an exemption for batteries used in “wet conditions” to opt out electric toothbrushes and possibly wearables like earbuds and smartwatches. The exemption is “based on unfounded safety claims,” states Thomas Opsomer, policy engineer for iFixit, in RepairEU’s post.
I don’t know why waterproofing phones became de facto standard. How often will that waterproofing actually come to use?
Having worked in retail phone repair for 15 years, both for a major US carrier and privately… A lot.
I saw water damaged phones every single day, and I’m hundreds of miles from an ocean, sea, lake, or any major body of water. That’s just from mistakes near things like backyard pools.
Rain is quite common. Most clothing isn’t waterproof.
Or you could be making a call after a rainy day then drop it in a puddle.
Or your drinks spilled over
etc… etc…
There’s a difference between waterproof and rainproof. The Fairphone (just has a clip on back panel for easy access to the battery) is rain proof
This is because waterproof devices
will bemight be exempt from having to have replaceable batteries.Source